Monogomy
It’s rarer than you think.
This article is a summary of Who’s Your Daddy? Owl Monkeys Know For Sure, by Mary Bates, published in Wired, 20/March/2014. Paraphrased with permission.
DNA profiling puts the acid test on supposedly monogamous animals. It turns out that most species aren’t as faithful as they appear. Instead, they practice social monogamy — forming pairs to mate and raise offspring, but also occasionally mating with other partners. Such outside matings are known as extra-pair copulations, and both males and females can sneak them in.
Social monogamy is rare in mammals, with only 3 to 5 percent of the roughly 5,000 mammalian species known to form lifelong pair bonds. But genetic monogamy — foregoing any extra-pair copulations and staying true to one’s partner — is even rarer.
Genetic monogamy has been reported in only six mammals: the California mouse, Kirk’s dik-dik (a small antelope), the Malagasy giant jumping rat, pack-living coyotes, the Oldfield mouse, and recently the Owl Monkey. For other pair-living mammals, extra-pair copulations go on regularly.
No wonder cheating websites are booming.
Image Credit: Owl-faced monkey by Hans
Tags: #Biology #Sociology
